A Goddess' Prowess
by GoldFountain
Summary: What does it mean to have courage? Follow Farore, a girl blessed - or cursed - with the gift of courage, as she humorously tries to bring the Triforce of Courage to its rightful beholder.
1. Chapter 1

**A Goddess' Prowess**

**1**

* * *

The city of Hyrule. Just the utterance of the name was enough to send the vision of a grand, bustling metropolis full of fanciness and luxury coursing through the mind of the average peasant farmer. Ruled by the gentle, caressing hand of her divine Queen Zelda, the beloved lady was a key part of that Hyrulean vision. To have the chance to see her Highness in person as she journeyed through the city was a dream to nearly all of her subjects.

The people of Hyrule loved their queen and their land, so it came as no surprise that they would also treat the capital with the same awed admiration. The central plaza, in particular, was instrumental in contributing to the beauty of the city. Leading up to the royal castle, the plaza had one of the most ornate mosaics ever known in the history of Hyrule. Tens of thousands of people passed through the plaza each day, from merchants to bards to the queen's ambassadors to tourists coming to see the most out of the city's grandeur.

And now, standing smack dab in the center of the plaza with an unfurled map hiding a green head, was just one of these many tourists that visited the city each and every day. But she was not your average tourist that came for merely sightseeing, if her peculiar green hair was any indication. This rebellious tourist was named Farore, and she came to the city with the sole purpose of carrying out a mission: to deliver the Triforce of Courage to its worthy beholder.

"Hm," said Farore, turning her map upside-down with a dissatisfied frown.

Crowds of horse-drawn carriages and royal knights clopped past Farore at a quick but steady pace, some of them giving the green-haired lass curious glances as they passed by. Farore remained oblivious to all of the action around her, as she strenuously tried to find her location on the map to no avail.

"Now where am I?" Farore muttered to herself, putting her head closer to the map as if that would make things any easier. "I can't be that far from the castle."

As Farore turned the map around again, a gentlemanly voice sounded from behind her:

"Are you lost, little lady?"

Farore jumped, not expecting anyone to notice her fiddling with her map. She was more surprised that someone would actually talk to her in a busy city like this.

"Ah!" Farore gasped, finding herself face-to-face with a man in a dapper suit, smiling kindly at her.

"Pardon me if I startled you, miss. Did I hear you say you wanted to locate Hyrule Castle?"

The man was tall and slender, his hair a shiny white. A monocle was worn in his right eye, but who knew if it was actually being used as a corrective lens instead of as a sign of material wealth? As far as Farore knew, monocles had gone out of fashion a century ago. She wished someone would have had the courage to tell this man that his sense of fashion was as outdated as a jar of pickles gone bad.

Farore regretted thinking those words the moment they popped into her thought train. Shutting her eyes, the girl braced herself before she shouted at the man:

"My good sir! I do think your habit of dress, especially that monocle, has become as outdated as a jar of pickles gone bad!"

Farore clapped a hand to her mouth, knowing full well what she had just said to a benevolent stranger. She stared up at the man with horror.

The monocled man was not quite so monocled anymore. His eyes widened in shock, and that change in face of stoic gentlemanliness caused his monocle to fall out and dangle pathetically on the front of his suit. The swaying movement made the monocle look rather like a pendulum, Farore noticed.

The two of them stood there at the center of the plaza, gawking at each other. It wasn't too long before they began to attract a crowd.

Being a bit at a loss for words, Farore looked to the side and said rather sheepishly, "Erm, I'm very sorry, sir. Those words just kinda... slipped out of my mouth."

The old man blinked. But once he did, the little green-haired girl standing in front of him vanished from his sight. He looked up, and if he squinted, he could see a small head of green bob and vanish into the oncoming crowd.

The man shook his head and put his monocle back into its proper position. It appeared that he now noticed the crowd focused upon him. Garnering such attention was a burden on the man, especially after receiving refuting remarks on his dashing attire.

Innocently, the man explained to his onlookers, "I was only trying to direct her in the proper direction."

He looked back where the girl had disappeared to. Incidentally, the man noted that the girl ran off to the south, back into the hub of the city. Exactly the opposite way from the castle, he realized.

* * *

"I can't believe I've done it again!"

Farore ran doggedly through the city's winding streets and alleys with no real destination in mind. All she knew was that she wanted to get away from creating a commotion as much as possible. She had enough problems getting into the city; she didn't need anymore trouble and risk getting kicked out of the place.

Looking around to her satisfaction that nobody seemed to be following her, Farore made a sharp turn into an alley and slid into the shadows behind a dumpster. Panting slightly, she folded her map and placed it into her handbag before she looked down at the sweat-infused chain around her neck.

She looked around once more to make sure no one was around, and pulled out her necklace. There, tied and glittering on the end of it, was a golden, triangular object that glowed with the brilliance of a thousand golden Rupees. It shone as though it were a flame beacon lighting up the darkness. She held it up to eye level, glaring at it accordingly.

"This is all your fault," Farore whispered angrily. "If you would only somehow magically transform into the Triforce of Wisdom, then maybe I'll be able to figure how to get out of this mess."

A bark suddenly blared from the darkness, causing Farore to squeak and jump once more in surprise. Slowly, Farore turned her head towards the source of the noise.

There, at the end of the alley, Farore could see more than a few sets of glowing eyes in the darkness. Unlike the glow from the Triforce, the glow from these eyes were a lot more menacing - it was positively ghoulish.

"But of course _that's_ not going to happen," Farore muttered, clutching her necklace closer to her chest.

And with that, Farore took a deep breath, picked up her belongings, and then ran out of the alley with her tail tucked beneath her legs, all the while screaming for her life with a trail of at least twenty dogs chasing after her.

* * *

"One thing just leads to another," said Farore, panting.

Farore kept looking straight at the road ahead, weaving to and fro around an occasional obstacle - an old lady, manhole geyser, paperboy, etc. - whenever she needed to avoid a head-on collision. She didn't dare look behind her, and she didn't have to. Hearing the dogs' barking was enough to tell her that if she stopped for even a moment, she'd become dog food within seconds.

By now, Farore's legs were aching. For all of the traveling she did, she still did not have enough stamina to run for more than a mile or so, having opted for almost any method of transportation that prevented her from walking when she had the chance.

"Please, give me a sign that will let me lead these dogs away from my scent," Farore gasped word-by-word in between breaths.

As if to answer her prayer, Farore was approaching a T-shaped intersection. The path to the left led to a housing area, while the right path was clearly labeled "FOOD." Heaving a sigh of relief, it was clear to Farore which path she needed to take.

The dogs, still chasing poor Farore, were soon being led out of the commercial area and into the market district of the city, where food stalls and grocery stores flooded the sides of the streets. Screaming vendors declaring daily sales and specials paused mid-shout to look at the oncoming ruckus.

The vendors and shoppers saw a small green figure approach their way, followed by a dust cloud that consisted of...

A pack of ravenous stray dogs.

The vendors resumed their screaming, except now it involved gathering their food carts and stalls and making a run for it. Shoppers quickly clambered into the nearest carriages, which started immediately after the driver whipped - merely as a pretense, of course - the horses.

Amidst all the chaos, Farore luckily had the road cleared out for her, letting her run in a straight line while leading the dogs to what they wanted most: food. As she passed by the delis and sausage stalls, a large portion of the dogs chasing her rerouted towards the heavenly distractions.

"Sorry for the loss!" Farore managed to shout as she passed by an steak stall owner trying to stop his stall from being overrun by hungry beasts.

Within a short amount of time, the pack of dogs chasing Farore dwindled considerably, leaving only the most stubborn of the dogs still chasing after her.

Farore decided to take a risk and glance behind her. Three dogs left to throw off her trail. She quickly turned her head back forward, and subconsciously felt her chest to make sure her necklace was still there. It was. Farore let out a heaving sigh. Letting that thing out of her grasp would have been the biggest disaster she could have caused.

Farore could hear a chorus of screams ring from behind her as she dashed through a presentation of the nutritious properties of Lon-Lon beef. The sound of barking let Farore know that at least one more dog fell for her ploy.

She took one more glance behind her. Just one dog left.

"Come on!" Farore panted. "I'm not tastier than all those steaks and sausages, am I?"

She made a sharp turn around a corner and looked back, trying to see if the dog was still following her. Sure enough, she could see the dog's ragged hair fly amidst all of the screaming ladies. This one was not going to give up. It was sticking to her like mud. Farore decided then and there that she would have to take extreme measures. Hoping that she had enough courage to pull this off - and this thought was all it took - Farore let out a gasp and drew her heels on the cobblestone path, grinding to a stop.

In one fluid movement, Farore swiveled around on her still lifted heels and was now face-to-face with that stupid, stubborn dog. The dog, surprised, also began sliding all of its heels onto the ground, trying to prevent a guaranteed collision.

Guaranteed until Farore stepped out of the way and stuck her foot out, however. The dog, emitting yelps of fear and of the pain soon to come, flipped over Farore's foot and performed an admirable somersault in the air before landing into a passing noodle cart.

Farore had clasped her hands on her knees, gasping for breath. She wanted to apologize to that noodle cart owner, along with all of those other people, but she knew it would only bring more trouble. Another crowd already began to gather at the impact sites of those eateries where dogs had mauled the place. If Farore squinted, she could already see some officers flooding in from the end of the street, trying to restrain people and dogs alike. No doubt interrogations about the perpetrator would soon begin. Farore wouldn't have been surprised if posters of her have already been posted up on half of the walls in the city. Quickly, she tried to slide behind a nearby fruit stall, only to have an arm suddenly wrap around her neck and a hand clap against her mouth.

"Mmh!" Farore tried to scream, pulling at her captor's arms.

"Shh!" growled a low, whispering voice. "I'm not here to hurt you. You need someplace to hide, right?"

"Mmh?" was all Farore could mumble before she was dragged into darkness.

* * *

The cacophony and discord outside was muted as soon as Farore heard a clicking sound from behind her. A few steps later and another clicking sound allowed the dark room she was brought in to suddenly flood with light. Farore blinked, and saw that she was in an empty room.

Or almost empty, that is. Aside from the torches hanging from the walls, there was nothing more in the room other than tatami mats covering the floor, a few scrolls and a wide mirror decorating the back wall of the room. All the while, Farore waited for the man's grip on her to slip to make her escape. As soon as they arrived in this room, Farore felt her oppressor's hold on her slack slightly, and she took upon the opportunity to free herself.

"Ugh!"

Farore wrenched the man's arm away from her, running towards the scroll-covered wall with her back facing the wall. She had her eyes narrowed suspiciously at him. But her eyes had to widen if she wanted to get a good look at the man.

He was a rather handsome young man that looked as though he were in his twenties. His long, blond hair reached to his waist, and all he wore were loose-fitting robes that did little to hide his chiseled physique.

"Woah, there. No need to flare up like a Deku Scrub at me, miss," said the man, raising his hands.

"Who are you?" Farore asked, pointing a accusing finger at him.

The man smiled, much to Farore's surprise. He straightened up and declared loudly:

"I am one of the famous Blade Brothers - "

_The Blade Brothers?_

" - And a master of the sword, a knight in robed armor, a dashing young man capable of - "

"Out with it!" Farore shouted.

"W-What?" said the man.

The man cowered against the girl's intimidating glare. He cracked.

"S-Swiftblade's my name, miss."

"Why have you brought me here?" demanded Farore.

Farore recoiled when the man thrust a hand at her.

"Wait a second!" said the man assertively. "I gave you my name. It's only fair if you give me yours, miss."

Farore shoved his hand away. She glared at him. If he really was named Swiftblade, and was one of the Blade Brothers, then there would be no doubt of his chivalry. Judging from the rather rickety dojo they were in, it looked as though the man might be telling the truth. But who knew if he was telling the truth and was not just some random, amateur swords practitioner?

Wait, no. There was his hair. Unless this person was an imitator - and who would want to imitate this guy's look, unless they were a total fanatic - this man really was who he said he was.

But still, would it be all right if she revealed her identity to him?

Seeing how earnest this man seemed to be, as well as the fact that she might have been a little quick to anger when she was indeed rescued by him after she was caught in a troublesome situation with pretty much no means of escape, Farore decided that giving her name wouldn't be that harmful considering the harm that she already caused. The only consequence of this decision was that it may cause a worldwide riot if a girl sharing the name of one of the Golden Goddesses was now living amongst the people on the ground and thus cause a possible bounty to be placed on her head if she didn't have one on her already. Decisions, decisions.

"My name is Farore," sighed Farore, after weighing her options.

The man's eyes widened.

"Farore? You're named Farore? After the goddess?" Swiftblade said slowly, sitting down.

What? Well, that went better than expected.

"Ye-es?" Farore said. She shook her head, and with regained confidence, repeated, "Why have you brought me here?"

Swiftblade flashed a sunny smile at her.

"Why, a master swordsman always helps a person in need!" Swiftblade replied.

"So... a master swordsman equals superhero nowadays? Huh," said Farore, putting a hand to her hip.

This time, Swiftblade was dignified enough to smile sheepishly at her, instead of giving her that overblown grin of his.

"Don't get me wrong. I appreciate what you're doing," Farore said with her head lowered, as she examined a spot on her dress. She looked up at him. "But I have to know. What's in it for you?"

"Nothing," responded Swiftblade immediately with a shrug. "I just wanted to help you, that's all."

"You would really help a total stranger?" Farore said incredulously. She was finding Swiftblade to be more nobly foolish with each passing second. "You don't even know if I led those dogs here on purpose."

"I'm sure you did not come here with that intention in mind," said Swiftblade, crossing his arms.

He gave Farore a piercing, determined glare. Farore returned it with equal ferocity. A little pulse in her chest sounded, prompting Farore to drop her gaze.

After a pause, Farore said to Swiftblade rather begrudgingly, "Well... Thank you."

Swiftblade smiled. "So what were you doing with all of those dogs behind you, anyways?" he asked.

"Running away from them, of course," Farore said, rolling her eyes. When she saw Swiftblade's hurt expression, however, she continued, "Sorry, I didn't mean to sound sarcastic. But that's really what I was doing."

"And how?"

Farore glanced up at the ceiling. "Well... I wanted to take a rest. In an alley."

"In an... alley."

"Um, yes. I was, er, lost, you see. I was on my way to Hyrule Castle, and wanted to rest up a bit before I headed over there," Farore explained.

"Hyrule Castle, did you say?"

"Hm? Yes, Hyrule Castle. What about it?" said Farore, puzzled.

Swiftblade opened his mouth as if to say something, but was interrupted when the sound of a knock came from the door.

Quickly, Swiftblade got up and rushed over to Farore, whispering into her ear:

"Quick, hide!"

Farore didn't even bother to look around the bare and empty room.

"Where? This room has no places to hide in!" Farore whispered back.

For answer, Swiftblade gently guided her towards one of the scrolls on the wall. Farore had a pretty good idea what Swiftblade was going to do. Sure enough, in one swift motion, Swiftblade lifted up the scroll to reveal a hidden alcove... filled with swords.

Farore tried to shake her shoulder from Swiftblade's grip. Scandalously, she cried:

"You can't possibly expect me to fit in there with all of those swords!"

"Please, just try!" Swiftblade pleaded.

Farore eyed the shining blades with apprehension. Even so, she grudgingly climbed into the alcove, making sure that all of the blades were securely straight up against the wall before doing so. Swiftblade _was_ trying his best to help her, after all.

"I swear, if these things kill me, I'll make sure you don't get on to your next life," said Farore.

"That's not a problem. I plan on staying in this world as a ghost anyways, just like my ancestor, Swiftblade the First - " began Swiftblade, only to hear some forceful knocking again. "Coming!"

Swiftblade realigned the scroll and ran to the door, where a fist was raining knocks down on it rapidly. A door clicked, and Swiftblade's voice greeted:

"Ah, hello, officers. How may I help you today?"

Farore had her ear pressed against the scroll, though she was careful not to lean on it lest she risk falling out.

Trying hard not to pull away from the coarse scroll that was making her ear itch, Farore heard a cold, authoritative voice ring out:

"Good day, sir. We have been informed that a certain bedraggled, green-haired young lady has been seen around this area."

_Bedraggled?_ Farore's hands automatically went up to her hair-tied buns. As far as she knew, she was always as clean as a newly shaven lamb.

"Would you, by any chance, have any clues that may lead to where this girl has gone to?" continued the voice of the officer.

The sound of some rustling of papers let Farore know that the visitor was bringing out a picture of her for Swiftblade to see. She strained her ears to hear what Swiftblade's response would be. From what she knew of him since their last ten minutes together, it was that Swiftblade did not seem like a very capable liar. She hoped he wouldn't fall apart.

After a few seconds, Farore heard Swiftblade say:

"Ah, yes. It would have been impossible to not have seen that green head floating amongst the crowd."

Farore clapped a hand to her mouth, having nearly let out an affronted gasp. Was Swiftblade going to feed her to the officers?

Her worry was displaced, however, when she heard Swiftblade continue:

"I believe I saw someone looking like her go down the street, towards the central plaza. Although, I'm not certain. It's easy to get muddled with all the craziness that was going on."

"We appreciate any lead, no matter how insecure it may be," Farore heard the officer say. "Thank you for your time, sir."

"Of course," replied the voice of Swiftblade.

Farore hear some footsteps and then the sound of a door closing again. A small click to signify it was locked and after waiting a few moments to hear the militant footsteps fade away, Farore felt secure enough to let out a breath.

"Miss Farore," Swiftblade called out quietly. "The coast is clear. You can come out, now."

Farore graciously stepped out of the alcove and emerged from behind the scroll.

"Whew. Never do I want to be stuck in a room with so many sharp surfaces ever again," said Farore, rubbing the side of her face.

Swiftblade let out a deep, mirthful laugh, which resounded throughout the large room.

"You should have seen me performing at the Hyrule Festival! I probably danced with more than a hundred blades during my sword balancing act!" Swiftblade boasted.

"I'm sure it was a hoot," said Farore with a wave of her hand. "Now, what were you going to say earlier?"

"Earlier?"

"About Hyrule Castle."

"Oh, right," said Swiftblade with a slap to his reflective forehead. "About that."

* * *

A/N: Woo terrible cliffhanger.


	2. Chapter 2

**A Goddess' Prowess**

**2**

* * *

"Hyrule Castle?"

Swiftblade was sitting back down on the tatami mats, putting a hand to his chin in thought.

Farore stood staring at the man, her hand fidgeting with the string of her necklace. Even though Farore was standing up, she was still no taller than Swiftblade. Even while sitting, he could still look down at Farore at his height.

"Miss Farore."

Farore looked up expectantly at the tall man, only to blink suddenly out of surprise. Swiftblade had his eyes narrowed and his lips pursed into a small line, exhibiting an interrogative, almost angry expression that Farore would not have expected out of the man. Had he figured out something?

"Yes?" Farore said, raising an eyebrow.

"Excuse me for asking, but why do you need to go to Hyrule Castle?" asked Swiftblade.

Swiftblade barely blinked when he received Farore's answer.

"I must speak with someone."

"Might I ask who?" said Swiftblade.

Farore bit her lower lip and stared at her toes, looking like a child that had just broken a vase and couldn't confront her mother. Farore knew her answer was too vague. But still, she could come up with the excuse that she and Swiftblade had just met. There was no need to tell him everything about her. There was no need to tell _anyone_ everything. That was part of her policy, after all.

Swiftblade let out a sigh. "I won't press you for an answer, but if it's the queen you want to meet, you can get a public audience with her set up with city relations."

"But can I? I'm on the run from the law, aren't I? And even if I didn't have a bounty on my head, I doubt that the queen would want to meet with a girl that looks only to be around nine or ten," said Farore.

Swiftblade opened his mouth, but Farore interrupted him before he could get a chance to speak:

"And yes, I am older than I look."

_Much older_, Farore thought, but she kept that to herself. She didn't want Swiftblade to start suspecting her now.

"That relieves me slightly," said Swiftblade. "Although, I'm curious to know about what else you did that would warrant an arrest of you. It's not as if you led those dogs to the market on purpose, you said so yourself, right?"

Farore shook her head.

"Yes, I did say that. But would the police believe me? They need someone to pin the blame on, after all, who's going to pay for all of this?" Farore said.

"But you're still a minor, aren't you? I'm sure that there will be compensations done for your expense, all of the responsibility can't possibly be attached to you."

Farore kept silent, avoiding Swiftblade's worried gaze. She couldn't possibly tell him that whether or not she was a minor didn't matter in the grand scheme of things. She was a girl named Farore, and also held the Triforce of Courage, no less! Just revealing that would cause any sort of chance at reconciliation to go flying out of the window.

Much to Farore's surprise and pleasure, however, Swiftblade was kind - tactful? - enough to change the subject.

"You still need to go to the castle, correct?" Swiftblade said. "If you need a private audience with someone, then I've got just the thing. Do you need to go somewhere specific?"

Farore opened her mouth and hesitated. Should she tell him? Her judgment told her yes. It wasn't as though she was distrustful of Swiftblade or wanted to avoid any probing questions about her. The possible loopholes that might appear if she let her tongue slip were what she was afraid of.

But Farore was not one to believe in the worst. What was important to think about now was how she could get to her destination quickly, and Swiftblade might be the one to provide the answer, seeing how he seemed to know something. Farore couldn't let this chance go to waste. She had to tell him, and tell him in what was assuredly a confident and unsuspicious manner.

Summoning up some courage, Farore said to him clearly:

"I need to get to the inner courtyard of Hyrule Castle."

Farore watched Swiftblade's reaction closely. If he was surprised, he didn't show it. Farore took a small breath of relief. What had she been worrying for?

Scratching his stubbled chin, Swiftblade said to her calmly, "Hm. The inner courtyard?"

"Um, yes," said Farore.

"That's a pretty hidden place, from what I've heard. Do you know where it is, exactly?" Swiftblade asked.

"Not exactly," said Farore, shaking her head. She reached into her bag and pulled out a scroll. "But I do know the general area it's in. Here's a map. The courtyard I'm looking for is in the inner part of the gardens, I believe."

Swiftblade accepted the map and examined it carefully. He looked at a spot where Farore had circled sometime in red ink; a square patch of green located on the western side of Hyrule Castle. From what the map showed, there were no visitor entrances leading into the gardens. The gardens were isolated from the rest of the castle, surrounded by walls on one side and a deep moat on the other.

"These gardens look pretty impenetrable," Swiftblade remarked.

Farore kept silent, looking downcast at the floor. She didn't have very much hope in finding an entrance to the castle. As far as she knew, she ruined her chances of sneaking in by causing a commotion at the central plaza right before the castle, so an upfront approach was ruled out. And now that she had caused a ruckus around town, she couldn't even search for other options without being spotted and called into custody. There seemed to be no options left, but Farore desperately had to find one if she wanted to follow through her mission.

Farore jumped when she heard the sound of Swiftblade's knuckles rap against the map. She felt herself become covered with a shadow when her map was tossed back into her arms.

"But wait! I think I know just the solution!" said Swiftblade, standing up.

"Eh?" Farore said, putting her map away quickly. "Really?"

Swiftblade answered Farore's question by quickly heading towards the back of the room, where the scrolls hiding hidden alcoves hoarding swords hung to the left and right of a wide, floor-to-ceiling height mirror.

Farore watched Swiftblade's movements closely, keeping silent as she listened to the sounds of Swiftblade's sandals patter on the tatami flooring.

"Are you going to - " Farore began, only to stop when she saw Swiftblade pause beside the mirror.

Swiftblade glanced at Farore blankly, an inscrutable expression on his face. Then, focusing his attention on the mirror, Swiftblade pressed on the edge of it, and Farore jumped back, shocked to find the mirror move into the wall. Farore could feel her jaw drop as the mirror ground on gigantic hinges, revealing a far greater opening than any of the tiny scrolls could ever have hidden.

Breathlessly, Farore asked, "Is that... a revolving wall?"

Once the mirror was rotated a full ninety degrees and revealed a wide, catfish-mouthed opening to a tunnel in the wall, Swiftblade turned around and nodded to her.

"It's a secret passage of sorts that leads to the castle," explained Swiftblade, smiling slyly. "Right to the gardens, incidentally."

"That's amazing," said Farore, her eyes sparkling. The whole thing seemed like something you would see in a trick house. She paused, and her expression changed when she continued, "But why would there be such a thing in a sword-training facility?"

Swiftblade avoided her gaze. "It's a long story. Let's just say that I use it to visit some family that reside near Hyrule Castle. Please don't tell anyone about this."

"Ah," said Farore, with a small nod. "I understand."

Farore knew that there were at least seven Blade Brothers, all of which resided in secret dens throughout all of Hyrule. Whether they would hide behind a waterfall, a cliffside cave, or even the underground tunnels of Hyrule, the Blade Brothers would pass their skills only to those who could find them. Swiftblade seemed to be the only exception by opening up a dojo publically in the heart of Hyrule, the capital. Farore guessed that there needed to be some way for the brothers to pass down their skills more easily, and earn some income at that. Swiftblade must be using this cavern to meet one of his reclusive brothers.

"This was what I was probably talking about earlier," Swiftblade said. "You can take this secret passage straight to the castle gardens without fearing risk of being detected."

"This is really unbelievable," Farore said. She walked over to him and grasped his hands in hers. "I can't thank you enough. You've saved me from a dead end, in more ways than one."

Swiftblade looked away, blushing. "It's nothing, really."

Swiftblade's eyes trailed around the room, stopping only when he saw and read the time on a small clock perched on a spindly little table. His eyes widened. The man quickly freed his hands from Farore's to gesture at the hole in the wall.

Farore was surprised by the sudden movement. She said with a stutter, "Wh-What's the matter?"

"My afternoon lesson at three is about to begin," Swiftblade said as he unceremoniously ushered Farore over to the passage in the wall. "I can't risk your safety here if you don't leave now. Take this passage straight from here to reach the castle. It should lead out into the gardens."

Farore looked back around Swiftblade's waist to see if she had left anything behind in the room. She felt her feet slide from a tatami floor onto uneven rock, the area around her darken considerably as she entered the cave. Instead of proceeding forward, Farore turned around to look at what Swiftblade was doing.

"Be careful. There may be guards," said Swiftblade, as he quickly ran from Farore and over to the mirror to turn it back into its original position.

Farore seemed a little puzzled at this.

"Didn't you press a button or something to make the mirror move out like that?" Farore asked.

"Yes, but there isn't one to put it back into its proper place," answered Swiftblade, pushing against the front of the mirror with a grunt.

Farore's face contorted when she began to hear the mirror's edges grind against the floor and ceiling.

"Anyhow," Swiftblade continued as he continued to push. Farore's ears perked up. "I'm sorry that I can't accompany you. This journey is one for you to take."

"Oh, no, you've done more for me than I could ever thank you for. I appreciate it," replied Farore.

"It was nice meeting you, Miss Farore."

"It was nice to meet you as well, Swiftblade," Farore said with a smile. "Thank you for everything."

Swiftblade paused for a moment in his mirror pushing, processing what he had just heard. Did she really just say his - ?

"I do wonder why you have gone such a far length to help me as you did," said Farore, tilting her head slightly as though she were a curious pug.

Swiftblade peered around the side of the mirror and exclaimed without stopping his pushing, "Didn't I tell you before? That's the duty of a master swordsman!"

Farore couldn't help but chuckle. Swiftblade was truly a nobly foolish being.

"You're a good man," said Farore, covering her mouth.

Swiftblade seemed a bit affronted by her behavior. Scowling slightly, he shouted at her:

"Hey! Why aren't you running yet? Don't you have an appointment to keep with someone?"

Farore turned around, trying to stifle her chuckles without success. As she began to walk forward into the passage, she heard Swiftblade call out once more from behind her.

"Miss Farore! Let us meet again sometime!" Swiftblade's voice echoed through the tunnel.

Farore turned her head around, and seeing the last modicum of light peek through a crack between the wall of the cave and the mirror, Farore called back to him:

"We will! Don't worry!"

And with that, the backside of the mirror closed against the wall, leaving Farore smiling to herself in darkness as she headed towards the gardens of Hyrule Castle.

* * *

"Ugh, this smell..."

If there was one question that Farore could have asked Swiftblade regarding the secret passage before she had entered, it was whether or not the 'underground tunnels' were actually a part of the city's sewers instead.

"Why didn't I notice this pungent odor sooner?" said Farore, pinching her nose.

Farore plodded forward along the tunnel, making sure to step as far away from the current of dirty water as possible. She did not want to fall in and end up deposited on the opposite end of the city. One of her hands was pressed against the wall, serving as a guide of sorts in the near darkness of the tunnel. Farore hoped dearly that there weren't rats infesting the place, or anything else creepy and icky, for that matter, such as a Like Like. Losing her necklace to one of them spelled out an automatic game over for her.

Farore slowly continued to walk in a straight line, detouring only when something like an overturned oil drum was in her way. Puddles of sickly green liquid flooded the sides of the tunnel. It didn't take long before Farore's stockings were completely soaked, her boots becoming completely drenched with sewage water. And her hair! Farore's hair had dropped out of their buns and was now frizzy with all that added moisture and humidity. The smell would take forever to wash out of everything, but these were small sacrifices if it meant she could reach the castle gardens in such a prompt and direct manner.

"Who am I kidding? These are terrible sacrifices," Farore said, groaning. "I'm going to smell terrible for weeks. And these are the only clothes I have, too."

Farore, feeling sullen, didn't even spend the energy to avoid a large puddle in front of her. She felt water droplets splash onto her boots and legs, the bottom of her tunic also being caught in the crossfire.

"I told Swiftblade about the unlikelihood of me meeting the queen even without having caused those commotions. I wonder what the chances are now, seeing how dirty I am," grumbled Farore. "Ugh, that means those police officers were right about me being bedraggled after all."

After walking for what felt like an hour or so, Farore was panting, still clenching her nose tightly. Whoever told her that your nose adapted to smells within a minute or so was horrendously wrong. No matter what, she would never get used to that smell of raw sewage.

Farore didn't have to tolerate the smell for much longer, however, when she saw a dead end, some limelight pan down from the ceiling near what was assuredly a ladder. Farore's eyes widened, and she began to run down the tunnel, her energy having returned within a flash.

Farore jumped over a few puddles and made her way to the end of the tunnel. She placed a hand on a rung of the ladder. The cold metal felt wet and sticky, but that was not enough to deter her from beginning a long and arduous climb. The bad thing about this situation was that Farore couldn't keep a hand on her nose to prevent herself from smelling those foul odors, but she grinned and bore it with surprising vitality. Nothing would prevent her from pausing her climb if it meant that she could escape the sewers.

As Farore climbed, a thought kept running through her mind:

Her exit was here!

* * *

"Finally, I'm out of that hellhole!"

A pair of grubby hands slapped on the top of a circular formation of rocks. After a few moments, a disheveled green head popped up, its big green eyes peeking around the vicinity to inspect the area for threats After making sure the area was safe, the head popped back down into the hole again. Then, after a few seconds of stillness, a leg suddenly swung out, followed by an arm, and then the body of a small girl. Squinting at the sudden flood of light, Farore sat up. She had reached the castle gardens.

Farore climbed down from the circle of rocks and glanced around again, just to make sure that there weren't any hidden guards or sentries. All she could see were perfectly groomed hedges shaped into boring slabs that would never make it into a topiary garden. There weren't even any trees or flowers. Some royal garden this was.

Thinking that everything was safe, Farore took her first step forward... Only to slip and take a pratfall onto the grass.

"Ow..." Farore couldn't help groan. She hoped no one heard her fall. Or saw her fall, for that matter.

Farore got up, rubbing the back of her head. What did she slip on? She felt around the ground and her hands clenched upon something pointy yet round. She opened her eyes and found a small brown nut resting in her hand. There were identical ones scattered all around her, she noticed.

Acorns?

Farore fingered the nut. She wondered if these could be of any use.

Perhaps, if any guards heard her, she would be able to hide and just toss one of these out into the open, and then the guards would think that the noise was made by a stray squirrel or something. Not a very foolproof plan, but it could serve as back-up. Plus, Farore was hungry. The acorns might prove to become a useful ingredient for some stew in the future. That reason was enough to warrant her decision then, Farore decided. She grabbed a few and stuffed them into her pockets.

Farore saw only one path she could take out of this room, so she took it and walked slowly around a corner. As soon as she did, however, she saw a guard standing with his back towards her at the end of a long corridor. Farore paused for a moment before running back around the corner. She didn't expect to come across a guard this soon! In retrospect, it may have been better this way; better to put your guard up early rather than lose your guard amidst a lull of false security.

After taking a few deep breaths, Farore peeked her head around the corner. The guard was gone. Now was her chance!

Hoping that she had enough courage to pull this off, Farore's heart thumped painfully in her chest as she began to traipse down the corridor. She made it halfway thriugh when she saw the bobbing hat of the guard come towards her way again. Shocked, Farore quickly looked around for a place to hide, and thankfully, there were quite a few alcoves in the walls that would hide her from sight. Farore slipped into one nearby and waited, listening to the guard's footsteps get louder as he got closer and gradually diminish as he walked away again.

Farore wiped a bead of sweat off her forehead with her sleeve. Boy, she had never felt as stealthy as this before. She wondered how assassins performed their jobs so cooly, without a hint of fear. It takes a different kind of courage to act like that. She stepped out of the alcove, looking around once more for the guard, of which there only seemed to be one. Farore hustled over to the end of the corridor. She glanced around the room, spotting not a single guard around. He was in her blind spot currently, possibly standing at the opposite corner of the room, looking around for intruders.

Farore saw in the room that there weren't any places with thick shadows, nor any pots to hide in. The only places to hide in were in the hedges. If the guard was patrolling in a circular fashion, she would have to get past him once somehow, which meant the hedges. But doing so would alert the guard of her presence, with the rustling leaves and all. What could she do when she was in that situation?

The squirrel plan! That was it. Might as well give it a shot.

When Farore heard the guard resume walking again, she waited until she saw the man's had bob above the closest hedge before diving into the hedge beside her. Much like she predicted, the sound of rustling leaves alerted the guard, who Farore heard came dashing towards her with his clanking armor. Farore held her breath. Peeking from a gap in the branches, she could see the man's feet step warily near her location. Time to bust out the acorns.

Farore reached into her pocket to pull out a handful of acorns. Making sure her hand wasn't sticking out of the bush, Farore tossed one of the acorns out in front of the guard's feet.

The guard walked forward, his head turning from side to side as he tried to locate the source of the noise. Farore watched him carefully, holding her breath when the guard was steps away from the acorn. His head turned forward, and a long leg stretched out. Did he see the acorn? Was he really going to fall for her ploy?

The guard stepped forward. But instead of spotting the acorn, he stepped on it instead. Farore shut her eyes; she didn't have to watch any further to know what was going to happen. The guard's eyes bulged out in surprise. Without even being able to give a cry, he fell onto the ground with a loud, resounding crash.

A metallic helmet came rolling towards the hedge Farore was hiding in, stopping when it came in contact with the bush. Farore opened her eyes and saw a man lying down on the ground. The guard had fallen unconscious.

Farore let out a small squeak. In her defense, her plan worked, albeit not in the way she intended.

Farore realized that she had to take this opportunity to make her way to the next room, lest more guards coming in to see this ruckus. The little girl swam through the hedge and stepped out the end of it, leaves and branches coating her clothes and hair. Farore shook her head and quickly ran past the fallen guard to the next room.

* * *

_Great, I'm out of acorns._

Farore was running along the last corridor before the tunnel that led to the inner courtyard of the castle gardens. Seeing how her squirrel plan worked so well the first time, Farore decided to use it whenever she came across a guard. That last room with three guards in standing in the same spot made it a bit difficult for her to execute her plan, however. But somehow, by throwing a handful of acorns down onto the ground in desperation, she had caused all of them to trip and fall, knocking each other down like bowling pins. She made it past them amidst the chaos, but in doing so, she used up her last remaining acorns.

_Looks like no acorn stew for me tonight_, Farore thought with a grumble.

Farore took a quick glance behind her to see if any guards were behind her. Somehow, she, a little girl, had traversed through the castle gardens without being detected by what should have been the most elite of guards in all of Hyrule. One might have called it luck that brought her this far. Farore didn't knock out the possibility of further obtacles laying ahead, however. Having learned her lesson by now, Farore decided to save her sighs of relief for a more opportune time. The last thing she needed was to be caught at this final stretch, just moments away before the finish line.

But even so, Farore couldn't help but let out a squeak. She looked up and around the wide tunnel she had reached, which was tall enough to let horseriders and some of the smaller of Gorons pass through. The amount of cobblestone and masonry work put into building this tunnel, much less the entire castle, was staggering. As Farore looked and walked around inside one the castle's structures, she began to understand why so many people came to the city of Hyrule just to see the beauty of the castle.

"Wow," Farore whispered to herself, fingering the string of her necklace. She noticed her slow speed of walking and continued, "I should probably go a little faster."

Farore elevated her walk into that of a small jog, her soft footsteps now sounding crunchier as she dashed on the grass. The tunnel was long, but there were more than enough breathtaking views through the tunnel windows along the way. Granted, she couldn't have seen much, for she was probably trotting at a quicker pace than she would have liked in order to take in the sights. That may have been for the better, though, as Farore could not risk dilly-dallying to stop by and smell the flowers when she had a mission to do. At least this tunnel was not a part of the sewers, Farore mused.

There was no noise in the tunnel except for the sounds of Farore's heavy breathing and footsteps. No animals were present; birds wouldn't be calling at this hour, much to Farore's lament. Perhaps there might be some in the inner courtyard. There always were birds and forest animals in clearings where maidens lie. Farore could picture it now: a kind, saintly, modestly dressed woman singing a clear cut song from the heavens - one that had lyrics devoted to her, preferably - while placing freshly picked flowers into a self-woven basket, surrounded by critters such as rabbits, squirrels, deer, and singing robins.

Farore hoped that there would be no guards at the entrance of the courtyard to ruin her glorious image, even though she already knew that the castle's inner courtyard was one of the few safe and incorruptible havens of the castle.

Within a minute, Farore saw a bright light at the end of tunnel. Farore shielded her eyes, but did not stop her running. From what she saw, there were no disfigurements in the white, round lighting ahead of her, signifying that it was likely no guards were waiting for her.

And then, just like that, Farore burst out of the tunnel and into the open, the sudden sunlight blinding her for a moment as she tried to regain her whereabouts.

The inner courtyard was, shockingly, almost exactly the same as the clearing in her imagination. Very rarely did one's daydreams come to life right in front of their eyes. There was sunlight filtering through the assortment of trees surrounding the perimeter of the courtyard, birds tweeting among the branches, and rows of blooming flowers planted in neat little gated-off squares.

And standing there, in the back of the courtyard on a small pedestal to complete the image, was a woman in glittering attire gazing through a window with her back facing Farore. Farore had no doubt that there would be a basket of flowers in her hands. The vision was too perfect for there to not have been. Farore walked forward, the sound of her footsteps crunching on the grass alerting the woman of her presence. Farore stopped dead in her tracks.

The woman turned around, doing so slowly so that her shimmering veil did not flutter off of her head. Eyes of ruby red gazed inquiringly at the new visitor. The face that met hers took Farore's breath away; she couldn't help but let out a gasp. Farore clutched the string of her necklace and backed up towards the entrance.

"You! You're not Queen Zelda," said Farore.

The woman smiled, her knowing eyes telling all sorts of tales. With a tanned hand, she reached up for her veil, and in one swift motion, whisked it away, revealing her identity as the person that masqueraded as the queen - Queen Zelda, who was the one Farore was expecting to meet the most out of this guard-infested castle.

In a deep, rich, and melodious voice, the woman said to Farore, "And you, miss? You are not Link, the bearer of the Triforce of Courage."

* * *

A/N: And there's the classic scene of OoT (and for those who haven't played it, Spirit Tracks is a fine alternative) subverted in the name of Farore! Who is this mystery woman? There seems to be two possibilities, but there's really only one (I hope).


	3. Chapter 3

**A Goddess' Prowess**

**3**

* * *

"'Link'... Who is that? And what do you mean by, 'The bearer of the Triforce of Courage?'" Farore said, giving the woman a suspicious glare.

"I think you very well know, miss."

Farore had her feet planted on the ground as she gazed up at the mysterious woman in front of her. Her mind was a swirling mass of thoughts and confusion. Should she run? Was this woman a friend or foe? Why was this woman here, and dressed as Zelda as well? Did this woman expect her appearance? Or did Queen Zelda expect her appearance, and set up this woman as a decoy instead? How did this woman know about the Triforce? And most importantly, why did this woman know and bring up _that_ name?

As far as Farore knew about implying her motives to others, she had only suggested the idea that she was searching for Queen Zelda, which was completely true at the moment. So why did this woman say that name, of all names? Something was definitely up.

Before Farore could utter a word, however, she looked up and found a pair of inquisitive red eyes gazing at her at an inch from her face.

Startled, Farore let out a squeal and scrambled backwards, only to stumble and feel her center of gravity suddenly change when her foot caught on a stray vine stretching across the ground. The woman extended an arm in an effort to stop her from falling, but she was a moment too late. With a soft crash - as loud a sound as one could get from falling on grass - Farore fell face first down onto the grass.

The woman rushed over, helping Farore back up while asking, "Are you alright?"

"Mpphf..." was all Farore could mumble, her mouth full of grass.

As the woman helped Farore up, it was only until that the latter was completely upright did she think about whether or not her necklace had fallen out. Instinctively, Farore spit out the grass and looked down at her chest. Try as she might to wrench her eyes from the unpleasant sight, there it was. The Triforce of Courage had slipped out of her tunic, and was now in plain view.

Farore kept her eyes glued at her chest, only moving her gaze when she felt the woman's hand slowly slip out of hers. She watched the hand slink away, and easily anticipated the words that followed.

"Well, well! What have we here?"

Farore looked up at the woman begrudgingly. The woman's red eyes gazed piercingly into hers, hovering above a slight smirk. Farore bit her lip.

"Is that the Triforce of Courage, I see?"

Farore didn't bother putting the Triforce back underneath her tunic. The fact that this woman guessed which part of the Triforce it was made it unlikely that any lie would be able to get her out of this situation.

"Yes," Farore confirmed. "How did you know, though?"

Farore cocked her head backwards like a pigeon when she found an index finger pointing accusingly at her nose.

"Your clothes," said the woman simply. "The green tunic, the brown boots, a child around the age of ten or eleven. All of these were signs of the Hero of Time."

"The Hero of Time?"

"Yes. Although, the green hair I'm quite sure was not a part of the formula. Is that your natural hair color?" the woman asked.

"Oh, no. It's dyed," said Farore, touching one of her buns fondly. She brought her hand back down after a moment and continued, "But that's beside the point. So you said that you knew I was carrying the Triforce of Courage due to those... signs? Signs of the Hero of Time, you said?"

Farore jumped when the woman suddenly let out a large, boisterous laugh. The explosive volume of her laugh was enough the shake the leaves in the trees, causing birds to fly out of the courtyard clearing. It wasn't hard to tell what Farore was thinking judging by the way she covered her ears and the scrunched expression covered her face.

Once the woman stopped laughing, she said with a deep breath, "Pardon me. To answer your question, miss, yes, I did divine that you were holding the Triforce of Courage due to those signs. If those signs included that the Hero was carrying the Triforce at all!"

Farore was flabbergasted. "What? But Link - !"

Farore stopped again when she found a finger thrust dangerously close to her nose once more. Those sharp nails were long enough to gouge someone's eyes out, Farore thought, as she eyed the appendage with distaste.

"So you do recognize the name after all," the woman cut in, giving Farore a triumphant smile. "It's best to stop feigning, miss. After all, that is your name, isn't it? Link."

Oh, bother. The woman thought _she_ was Link? She touched her temple, shaking her head in incomprehension. Her shoulders rose and sagged.

"I-I'm afraid I don't know what you mean," said Farore. "But I can tell you with certainty that my name is not Link, nor am I the Hero you mentioned."

The woman put a hand to her chin. She examined Farore more closely. "Hm? Then why do you have the Triforce of Courage?"

"I have it, because I am the owner of it."

The woman's eyes, which were fixated on the glowing object on Farore's chest, moved up to the face above it. After a few seconds of determined staring on both ends, the woman's eyes slowly widened, as though she had come across a revelation. The woman's hand on her chin had now fallen by her side, and her body was now trembling. She glanced at one of the stained glass windows on the castle wall behind Farore, which had the picture of a faceless figure outlined in green, floating beside a familiar yellow triangle. There was no doubt as to what her conclusion was.

"No!" the woman cried. "You can't be..."

Having already closed her eyes and put on a sagely smile on her face, Farore prepared to nod.

Her hopes were diminished, however, when Farore suddenly felt a tugging on her wrist and her feet dangling in the air.

"Wha?" Farore cried, finding herself cradled in the arms of the woman.

Before Farore had any chance to free herself, however, there came a flash of light, and the next thing Farore knew, the clearing vanished before her eyes, and everything faded to black.


End file.
